On January 6, 2016, 37-year-old Christa Benton of Littleton, Colorado, was fatally shot by her boyfriend, David Fallon, in a tragic murder-suicide. The events of that day began unfolding hours before the fatal shooting, when Benton's 18-year-old son called 911 to report a violent altercation between his mother and Fallon. During the call, the son conveyed the severity of the fight, stating that his mother was screaming about her neck and that he believed Fallon might have a gun.
In the
hours leading up to her death, Benton herself took to social media, posting about the assault. In one post, she wrote, 'That a-hole tried to break my neck! On my way to the er.” She also reached out for help, asking for a ride to the hospital and later expressing her struggle to afford food and a prescription. Her final public post, made just about an hour and a half before she was shot, mentioned waiting for her son at a Taco Bell and ended with the heartbreaking words, 'Can't take the pain anymore!!!!!!'
Despite the earlier 911 call, when Littleton police officers responded to the domestic violence report, they did not arrest Fallon. The initial police report was brief, noting 'Allegations of physical contact but no evidence.' Benton did seek medical attention and was diagnosed with a cervical strain from a physical assault. However, tragically, later that day, at approximately 2:30 p.m., David Fallon shot Christa Benton in their apartment on South Grant Street before turning the gun on himself. When police arrived at the scene, they found Fallon deceased and Benton critically wounded with a gunshot to the head. She was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead.
The suspect in Christa Benton's death was her 45-year-old boyfriend, David Michael Fallon. The Arapahoe County Coroner's Office confirmed that Benton's death was a homicide resulting from a gunshot wound to the head, and Fallon's death was a suicide from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The incident prompted scrutiny of the Littleton Police Department's handling of the initial domestic violence call. A friend of Benton's stated that she had been trying to leave Fallon for a long time due to his threats and violent behavior. The case highlighted the devastating consequences of domestic violence and raised questions about whether more could have been done to prevent this tragedy.
